Since China, the world’s largest copper consumer, isn’t self-sufficient regarding copper assets, it needs to import copper. Copper mining is situated in Latin America. Chile is the largest mined copper producer.

Short interest is low for SCCO with fewer than 5% of shares on loan. The last change in the short interest score occurred more than 1 month ago and implies that there has been little change in sentiment among investors who seek to profit from falling equity prices.

In the previous part of this series, we looked at Freeport-McMoRan’s (FCX) capital allocation strategy. Southern Copper is in the middle of a multi-year growth plan, and it expects its copper production to rise to 1.5 million tons by 2025. To put that figure in perspective, consider that the company produced 877,000 metric tons of copper last year and expects its copper production to rise 6% year-over-year to 931,000 metric tons this year.

As copper market conditions have improved, companies have also taken another look at their capital allocation strategies. Only a couple of years back, debt reduction was the sole priority for miners, as commodity prices were hovering near multiyear lows.

As we noted in the previous part of this series, Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) expects its unit cash costs to fall in 2018, largely due to lower production costs at its Grasberg mine (RIO)(TRQ). Freeport expects a byproduct credit of $2.56 per pound at its Grasberg mine this year, bringing down the mine’s unit cash costs after byproduct credits to -$0.57 per pound. To put this figure in context, consider that the company’s unit cash costs after byproduct credits are expected to average $1.67 per pound in North America and $1.63 per pound in South America.

Southern Copper Corp will invest about $2.5 billion in Peruvian copper project Michiquillay, with production of 225,000 tonnes of copper per year expected to start in 2015, the company said in a statement ...

Southern Copper Corp won a tender to develop Peru's estimated $2 billion Michiquillay copper mine in an auction that attracted just two bidders, the government's Proinversion investment agency said on Tuesday. Southern, controlled by Grupo Mexico SAB de CV , won with a proposal to transfer $400 million to the government and pay 3 percent royalties, beating out Compania Minera Milpo, which had offered $250 million in transfers and 1.875 percent royalties. Peru is the world's second biggest copper producer after Chile.

Southern Copper Corp won a tender to develop Peru's Michiquillay copper mine with a proposal to transfer $400 million to the government and pay 3 percent royalties, the government said on Tuesday. Southern ...

Peru will accept bids and award a contract to develop the estimated $2 billion Michiquillay copper mine on Tuesday in the first major auction from the world's No. 2 copper producer in at least a decade. The auction was delayed twice last year, in part due to political turmoil in Peru. The bids will be a gauge of investor confidence in President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, a former Wall Street banker who was nearly impeached in December.

Short interest is low for SCCO with fewer than 5% of shares on loan. The last change in the short interest score occurred more than 1 month ago and implies that there has been little change in sentiment among investors who seek to profit from falling equity prices.